NAGO, Japan,, Jul 21, 2000 -- (Agence France Presse) G8 new boy President
Vladimir Putin will snub Jacques Chirac during the summit of leading
world powers here, meeting all his counterparts save the French leader.

The Russian leader, attending his first Group of Eight summit, has been
angered by French criticism of Moscow's nine-month crackdown in the rebel
republic of Chechnya, and persistent moves by Paris to raise the issue at
international meetings.

Ties have been further strained by a French court decision to freeze Paris
bank accounts of the Russian embassy, trade delegation and UNESCO
representatives.

Relations plumbed new depths when legal authorities impounded a Russian
sailing ship on the request of Swiss trading firm Noga, which is seeking
repayment of Russian state debts.

"Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) is going to meet everybody except Chirac"
during the three-day meeting, a senior Kremlin official said.

A private meeting between the two men had never been planned, the official
said, but hinted that the snub was connected to the current dip in relations.

"You're very clever people, work it out for yourselves," the
official said, repeating a phrase which has become the stock reply by Kremlin
officials to questions about the reasons for the cold shoulder tactics.

Russian officials said that Putin would meet US President Bill Clinton
and British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Friday, and German Chancellor
Gerhard Schroeder early Saturday.